


Indulgence

by Magentas_Nightmare



Category: The Walking Dead & Related Fandoms, The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, I'm Bad At Tagging, Merle and Denise, Merle is a cheeky bugger;), Self-Image, Smut, True Love, indulgent eating, indulgent sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-16
Updated: 2020-01-21
Packaged: 2021-02-27 07:21:48
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22283293
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Magentas_Nightmare/pseuds/Magentas_Nightmare
Summary: Denise is a woman who loves good baking, and romance...sadly she is stuck in a marriage where her man appreciates neither. One day she encounters a man who will settle for nothing less than the finest indulgences in life and insists that she do the same;)
Relationships: Denise Cloyd/Merle Dixon
Comments: 11
Kudos: 17





	1. Chapter 1

**Indulgence**

###  **in·dul·gence**

###  **/inˈdəljəns/**

_noun_

  * **1.** the action or fact of indulging:"indulgence in self-pity" _synonyms_

  * [satisfaction](https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%3B_ylt%3DA2KLfSw90yBeF8cAZxBXNyoA%3B_ylu%3DX3oDMTEyOGZudjVkBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjkxNDZfMQRzZWMDc2M-%3Ftype%3DE211US0G0%26fr%3Dmcafee%26ei%3DUTF-8%26p%3Ddefine%2520satisfaction%26fr2%3D&h=AT2RHPa1KxF4ASgzm4ISnWWnqF-dID3GIgJdmbyxebM6XbyLycJwE9neG0FsFDuMMTZMQbrOnoge3CxYKK_MLgsb7dbclk9ONmiaepzHHZa-V5JxXOaUTNPw7zC68gPO7SQ6yQ), [satisfying](https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%3B_ylt%3DA2KLfSw90yBeF8cAaBBXNyoA%3B_ylu%3DX3oDMTEyOGZudjVkBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjkxNDZfMQRzZWMDc2M-%3Ftype%3DE211US0G0%26fr%3Dmcafee%26ei%3DUTF-8%26p%3Ddefine%2520satisfying%26fr2%3D&h=AT2RHPa1KxF4ASgzm4ISnWWnqF-dID3GIgJdmbyxebM6XbyLycJwE9neG0FsFDuMMTZMQbrOnoge3CxYKK_MLgsb7dbclk9ONmiaepzHHZa-V5JxXOaUTNPw7zC68gPO7SQ6yQ), [gratification](https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%3B_ylt%3DA2KLfSw90yBeF8cAaRBXNyoA%3B_ylu%3DX3oDMTEyOGZudjVkBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjkxNDZfMQRzZWMDc2M-%3Ftype%3DE211US0G0%26fr%3Dmcafee%26ei%3DUTF-8%26p%3Ddefine%2520gratification%26fr2%3D&h=AT2RHPa1KxF4ASgzm4ISnWWnqF-dID3GIgJdmbyxebM6XbyLycJwE9neG0FsFDuMMTZMQbrOnoge3CxYKK_MLgsb7dbclk9ONmiaepzHHZa-V5JxXOaUTNPw7zC68gPO7SQ6yQ), [gratifying](https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%3B_ylt%3DA2KLfSw90yBeF8cAahBXNyoA%3B_ylu%3DX3oDMTEyOGZudjVkBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjkxNDZfMQRzZWMDc2M-%3Ftype%3DE211US0G0%26fr%3Dmcafee%26ei%3DUTF-8%26p%3Ddefine%2520gratifying%26fr2%3D&h=AT2RHPa1KxF4ASgzm4ISnWWnqF-dID3GIgJdmbyxebM6XbyLycJwE9neG0FsFDuMMTZMQbrOnoge3CxYKK_MLgsb7dbclk9ONmiaepzHHZa-V5JxXOaUTNPw7zC68gPO7SQ6yQ), [fulfillment](https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%3B_ylt%3DA2KLfSw90yBeF8cAaxBXNyoA%3B_ylu%3DX3oDMTEyOGZudjVkBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjkxNDZfMQRzZWMDc2M-%3Ftype%3DE211US0G0%26fr%3Dmcafee%26ei%3DUTF-8%26p%3Ddefine%2520fulfillment%26fr2%3D&h=AT2RHPa1KxF4ASgzm4ISnWWnqF-dID3GIgJdmbyxebM6XbyLycJwE9neG0FsFDuMMTZMQbrOnoge3CxYKK_MLgsb7dbclk9ONmiaepzHHZa-V5JxXOaUTNPw7zC68gPO7SQ6yQ), ... [more](https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%3Ffr%3Dmcafee%26type%3DE211US0G0%26p%3Dendulgence%23&h=AT2RHPa1KxF4ASgzm4ISnWWnqF-dID3GIgJdmbyxebM6XbyLycJwE9neG0FsFDuMMTZMQbrOnoge3CxYKK_MLgsb7dbclk9ONmiaepzHHZa-V5JxXOaUTNPw7zC68gPO7SQ6yQ)

  * _antonyms_[ denial](https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%3B_ylt%3DA2KLfSw90yBeF8cAgBBXNyoA%3B_ylu%3DX3oDMTEyOGZudjVkBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjkxNDZfMQRzZWMDc2M-%3Ftype%3DE211US0G0%26fr%3Dmcafee%26ei%3DUTF-8%26p%3Ddefine%2520denial%26fr2%3D&h=AT2RHPa1KxF4ASgzm4ISnWWnqF-dID3GIgJdmbyxebM6XbyLycJwE9neG0FsFDuMMTZMQbrOnoge3CxYKK_MLgsb7dbclk9ONmiaepzHHZa-V5JxXOaUTNPw7zC68gPO7SQ6yQ), [moderation](https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%3B_ylt%3DA2KLfSw90yBeF8cAgRBXNyoA%3B_ylu%3DX3oDMTEyOGZudjVkBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjkxNDZfMQRzZWMDc2M-%3Ftype%3DE211US0G0%26fr%3Dmcafee%26ei%3DUTF-8%26p%3Ddefine%2520moderation%26fr2%3D&h=AT2RHPa1KxF4ASgzm4ISnWWnqF-dID3GIgJdmbyxebM6XbyLycJwE9neG0FsFDuMMTZMQbrOnoge3CxYKK_MLgsb7dbclk9ONmiaepzHHZa-V5JxXOaUTNPw7zC68gPO7SQ6yQ)




  
  


**Wolfsucka - Baby You Know Me**

**this song is amazing...play it loud!**

**<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTqwOi_dZZI> **

* * *

**~ Chapter 1**

Her hands kneaded bread dough rhythmically that morning as they had for years. Denise had made her first handmade loaf at the age of eight. Baking was her therapy, her craft, her history.

The power had gone out again due to a midsummer storm that also felled a tree in her front yard. She didn’t run the old wood stove often, but this morning she’d roll with it. The electric stove wasn’t making any bread that morning with no electricity and the mixer that normally worked the dough was out of commission as well. Denise was devoted to the bakery and would serve fresh bread every morning as long as it was possible. The small town of Tunnel Hill had always been served by her family and that would continue as long as she lived.

The two-story brick building was a place she felt more connected to than any other place on earth. Since infancy she had crawled upon the tiled floor of the kitchen and coloured pictures at the small table near the front window as a little girl. When she moved out of her parent's home at 18, it was the tiny upstairs apartment above the bakery that she called home. It had once been the home of her grandparents but these days the apartment upstairs was barely thought of as big enough for one person. Now that she was married and living with Gary, she missed that tiny apartment more than she probably should.

She walked to the bakery from her home at 3 am when the storm woke her up. She hated the sound of thunder and would rather crank up some tunes on her phone and make bread than try to sleep anyway. Gary would be annoyed that she had left in the night, but she left a note and walked out anyway. By 7 am she had enough loaves for the day baking in the wood fire stove and set to work decorating cupcakes from the day before.

Her first customers all applauded her for staying open even with no power and she took the praise with a little nod of her head and a thank you. Denise had put a huge sign in the window stating that she was “STILL OPEN! FRESH BREAD! COME ON IN!”. Her grandfather had run the bakery before and his father before that, the bakery stayed open through thick and thin.

She decided to make a few cherry pies since she had the oven going anyway and began to pit fresh cherries after the morning bread rush. Denise liked the way that cherries stained her hands and didn’t bother wearing gloves to avoid it. Her wavy blonde hair fell around her face as music blasted from her iPhone. Sure, she was wasting the battery, but she had nobody to call anyway. Gary would be pulling the silent treatment with her as usual and she just wasn’t in the mood for his nonsense. She figured that the power would be back on by suppertime and she needed music to function. There was never anyone in for a good hour after the bread rush, so she sang along to Wolfsucka freely. Denise loved alternative music, 70s rock, anything that tickled her soul a little.

**It's funny, 'cause you're in my thoughts.**

**No, no, backup, backup.**

**You're not in my thoughts at all 'Cause you're a hiccup.**

**And I kinda like my wish to win you.** **But I can't act like I'm failing you.**

**And I kind of like the comets up above.**

**And I kind of like the comets up above.**

**'Cause you know, deep inside.** **I study lots of minds.**

**And you know, deep down.**

**I'm the one for you...I'm the one.** **I'm the one for you...I'm the one.** **I'm the one for you...I'm the one.**

“Excuse me?”

“Jesus Christ!”she yelped.

Over the counter, she could see a face that she didn’t recognize, a face that stopped her in her tracks.

“I’m so sorry…I was off in my own little world there. Can I help you?” she fumbled, setting the bowl of cherries on the counter and turning to wash her hands.

“I’m in town to visit my brother and look for an apartment and I saw the sign for fresh bread, figured I’d take some over.”

“Sure thing,”she smiled at the stranger. “White or whole wheat?”

“White.”

Denise walked to the back to grab a paper bag and slide the fresh loaf into it.

“How’d you make bread with no power anyway?” the man asked.

His voice was gravely, and he looked older than her by a few years. He was handsome and friendly. The man had her full attention.

“Wood fire oven, I fired it up in the middle of the night when I couldn’t sleep.”

_Why was she telling him so much?_

“That’s devotion,”he winked. “Why couldn’t you sleep?”

“Storms freak me out a little…figured I may as well work.”

“It smells so damn good in here,”he moaned. “Nothing like the scent of a bakery…and what are you making there?”

He eyed her red-stained fingers and grinned.

“Cherry pie,” she answered, feeling herself steadily developing a crush on the stranger.

“When will it be ready?” he grinned.

“Uh….an hour or two?”

“Will you save me one? I could take it to my brother’s place for dessert.”

“Who is your brother? I probably know him.”

“Daryl Dixon.”

“I do know him! Well, his wife more than anything. Carol teaches at the school and I bring over treats for the kids all the time for holidays and stuff like that.”

“What’s your name?” he asked.

“Denise,” she smiled reaching over the counter to shake his hand.

“Merle Dixon, nice to meet you.”

He handed over a dollar fifty for the bread and made her promise to save him a pie for later.

“You have my word,” she blushed.

“Thanks, honey. Can’t wait to taste this,” he added, holding up the paper bag of bread.

The moment the door closed behind him, she felt as if she’d just met someone significant. The feeling came from nowhere and had no context. There was just something about him.

/

“Do you know that girl who works at the bakery?”Merle inquired at his brother’s kitchen table that morning.

“Denise?”

“That’s the one. She single?”

“Afraid not,”Carol shrugged.

“That’s a shame,” he frowned. “She sure is cute.”

“You’re not even living here yet and already you’re checking out the ladies,” Carol laughed.

“I like women. What can I say?” he chuckled. “She happily married?”

“Merle!” Carol sighed.

“Just kidding.”

“I don’t know much about her husband. He keeps to himself. Now that you mention it, she never talks about him at all.”

“Weird,” Merle noted.

The woman had curves in all the best places. Merle liked a woman with meat on her bones but all the women he encountered in the city were on a perpetual diet. He didn’t plan to stop checking Denise out and flirting. It was his style and that wasn’t about to change until she told him to stop.

/

Denise wished she’d been wearing something nicer than her old worn overalls and a red t-shirt, but it was what it was. She shouldn’t have cared what she looked like, but the handsome stranger had caught her eye and if she wasn’t mistaken, he was being a little extra nice to her. It had been ages since Gary looked at her that way and she missed it. Gary spent most of his time lately ‘encouraging’her to go for walks, eat healthier and consider diet pills. Denise felt unloved at home and a simple smile from a good-looking stranger was making her day.

When Merle returned, she was just pulling the last of the pies from the oven.

“Hi there,” she began, pulling her glasses from her face to clear the steam from the lenses with a towel.

“I smell something good,” he winked.

“I have a fresh pie cooled for you in that box on the counter,” she said as she pulled off her oven gloves and pointed.

“I can’t wait.”

“Hope you like it,” she smiled.

“I’m sure I will, I got a bit of a sweet tooth,”he winked and then his eyes were drawn to a glass display case where there were pastries, cookies and cupcakes.

“See something else you like?” she asked.

His eyes met hers over the counter and a sly grin reduced her insides to mush.

“You could say that….you make this Danish yourself?”

“I sure did, just yesterday.”

“I gotta have one.”

The table and chairs at the front of the shop looked out onto Main Street and nobody was in at the moment, so she did something she normally didn’t.

“Did you want to have one with a cup of coffee at the table?”

“Sounds good to me,” he nodded. “I might be spending a lot of time in here after I get moved in. I’m a sucker for the smell of baking.”

“You’re more than welcome anytime,” she shrugged bashfully.

Denise poured him a fresh cup of coffee and asked how he took it.

“Just cream,” he answered.

“So, you’re moving to town then?”

“Yep, this week.”

She watched him drinking the coffee for a moment and then he tasted the cheese and field berry Danish.

“Holy Christ that’s good!” he moaned in an almost sexual way.

“Oh…well, thank you,” she blushed.

He praised her talents and made her giggle with anxious energy for a moment and then he threw her completely off guard.

“Hope you don’t mind me saying this, but you’re really pretty.”

Her heart jumped in her chest and she didn’t know how to answer at first.

“Been a while since anyone said that to me…I don’t even know what to say,” she fumbled.

“I heard you were married,” he said with a frown of confusion.

“Oh…I am.”

Denise wished he didn’t know that for a moment and then wondered why he had mentioned her looks if he did know.

“You should be hearing that every day then, hey?”

“I suppose,” she answered awkwardly.

“Does someone have to set your man straight?” he teased.

“Maybe.”

“Sorry. I’m known for saying exactly what’s on my mind. Feel free to tell me to shut up any time you like.”

“No…I think you may be right actually.”

“I am right, Denise. You should be hearing about how beautiful you are every single day.”

A moment passed between them and Merle felt like maybe he’d said too much. She clearly didn’t know what to say so he made it easier on her.

“Well, thank you for the coffee and the Danish. I can’t wait to try this pie now,” he grinned. “If I haven’t worn out my welcome, then expect me back.”

“You’re more than welcome here anytime,” she smiled. “You made my day.”

“Then I’ll be back sometime soon to try and do it again,” he nodded and then he was gone, leaving her heart pounding and her mind confused.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

“Where were you this morning?” Gary asked when she made it home at 5:30.

“Work.”

“That early?”

“I decided to use the woodstove. May as well get in a day’s work if I can, right?”

“I guess.”

He cracked open a can of beer and settled down in front of the TV to watch football and didn’t bother to argue with her. Denise made him lasagna and a salad for herself, which she ate alone at the kitchen table.

“You going for a walk tonight?” he asked.

“I’m a little tired.”

“You’ll never get healthy if you don’t get some exercise.”

“I am healthy, and I’ve been up since 3 am.”

“Fine. If you’re stuck with diabetes in the future, don’t blame me,” he grumbled.

“If you don’t love me anymore, just say so…it would save us both a lot of time,” she said softly and got up to put her plate on the counter.

Denise didn’t want to go for a walk, she was well past exhausted, but she didn’t want to be in the same house as Gary either.

“I didn’t mean to be a jerk about it. I just worry about you.”

“My doctor isn’t worried, so I don’t know why you would be. You make me feel like you aren’t even attracted to me anymore.”

“Of course I am, you’ve got a beautiful face, Denise.”

She knew what this meant, she’d heard it from her own grandmother as a child.

 _You have such a pretty face, Denise. If you just lost a few pounds, you'll_ _have boys lining up at the door for you!_

Denise let it go, because she always did, and left the house to go for a walk feeling sleep deprived and low, she thought of Merle. He had told her she was pretty, even though he knew she was taken.

Why would he do such a thing? It didn’t make any sense.

She headed down the street toward the playground in the park and stopped to watch some children playing on the swings. Denise wanted kids, but Gary had told her that she should lose some weight first or she’d never lose the pregnancy weight as well. She couldn’t help wondering why he didn’t just marry a skinny woman. She had been a little thinner when they first met, but his constant critique of her body caused her to wander to the fridge more often for the comfort he wouldn’t offer her. Denise missed partaking in things she loved now, the judgment as he watched her anytime she tasted chocolate made it hardly worth it anymore.

The night had a touch of chill to it, but she didn’t care. Being outside alone felt better than being in her own home and she knew that something had to give soon. She had stopped caring as much for herself and threw all of her concern into the bakery. Somehow, she needed to put herself back on the priority list.

“Hey there!”

Denise jumped out of her skin for the second time that day and turned to see a figure moving across the grass toward her. The evening was overcast, and the sun was just lingering on the horizon as she squinted to be sure it was who it sounded like.

“Denise!”

“What are you doing here?” she smiled as Merle plopped himself down on the picnic table next to her.

“Had to have a smoke after two huge pieces of your cherry pie?” he chuckled. “My brother lives just over there.”

“Right! I totally forgot that Carol lived there. So, you liked the pie?”

“Liked it? It was so good. It was nothing like the store made ones.”

“I use a little Kentucky bourbon to reduce the cherry syrup,” she winked.

“Heaven…it was heaven,” he groaned.

“I’m so glad you enjoyed it.”

“What you doing out at this hour? You should be conked out after waking up so early.”

“I just needed to get out of the house,” she sighed.

“Something up?”

“Domestic bliss at it’s finest,” she mumbled.

“I am more than available to put him straight, you know?”

She didn’t detect any sense of joking in his voice then and looked over at him slowly.

“Don’t tempt me.”

“Why not? You’ve tempted me,” he stated, and she was sure she’d heard it wrong.

“Excuse me?”

Merle leaned in and she could smell the scent of beer mingling with intoxicating cologne.

“I may have had a couple of beers with my brother tonight so I’m probably saying too much,” he winked.

“It’s OK…it’s nice to have a man being friendly for a change.”

“Hey…he ain’t abusing you, is he?”

“Not exactly. He’s never laid a hand on me, he’s just rude sometimes. I’m starting to think he’s just not that into me anymore. He's made it pretty clear that I should lose some weight,” she shrugged.

“You don't need to lose a god damn pound, Denise. You look fine as hell just as you are!" he exclaimed and she was surprised at the fire in his response.

She couldn't help being incredibly flattered by his words.

“I can’t believe I’m telling you all this…all I did was sell you some baked goods and now I’m treating you like my therapist.”

“It’s nothing. I’m gonna be living here in a couple of days and I could use a friend besides my brother and sister-in-law.”

“You wanna be friends?” she smiled.

“Yeah. Think that would be OK with your rude husband?”

“I don’t know,” she shrugged.

“He doesn’t have to know, does he?” Merle grinned.

“Why do I feel like you might be a terrible influence over me?”

“You obviously have great instincts,” he teased.

“Where were you all this time?” she smiled. “I never had a friend this easy to talk to before.”

“I was in Atlanta, and now I’m here so drink it in.”

“You’re too much, but don’t stop,” she laughed.

“I better head back, but I think I’m gonna need another cup of coffee and a Danish in the morning.”

“I’ll be there,” she smiled.

“See you then, beautiful.”

“Merle…”

“You don’t have to call me beautiful back, devastatingly handsome will do just fine,” he chuckled.

“See you in the morning…devastatingly handsome,” she added with a sigh as he walked away.

An ache rose up in her chest at the loss of his presence and she knew it was more than simple attraction, already she felt a need just to be near him.

/

“You all pissy or something?” Gary asked when she walked through the door.

“Nope. I feel great,” she smiled. “Gonna hop in the shower and head to bed.”

“OK. What’s got you all smiley?”

“Just feeling good. That OK with you?”

“Of course, why wouldn’t it be?”

“Well, you do seem to get off on pointing out my flaws. One would think that maybe you don’t want me to feel good.”

“This again?” he groaned.

“Nope. Not this again, because I’ve decided to feel good whether or not you point out how much you don’t like me as I am,” she said and walked toward the bathroom.

“What the hell’s gotten into you?” he barked.

 _“Wouldn_ _'t_ _you like to know?”_ she whispered to herself.

  
  



	3. Chapter 3

**Tightrope - LP**

**<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-271y67QUq8> **

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Gary left her a ‘love' note the next morning and she held it in her hand for a moment before leaving for work; she didn’t believe the empty words. Gary started work at 5 am and she needed to be at the bakery early as well, they rarely saw each other in the morning.

_I do think you’re beautiful and I love you, that’s why I worry about you. Gary_

He acted like she was about to be bedridden or something. It was ridiculous. Her mother had been a full-figured woman and she always thought her mother was beautiful. Her mother had passed away at the tender age of 34 after a car accident, so looking a lot like her mother made her feel an eternal connection to her. Being married to a man who criticized her looks felt like a critique of her own mother and she hated that. Denise put on a floral top and a pair of jeans to head down to the bakery and wondered if Merle would really be there again as he said.

Sure enough, just after getting the last batch of bread out of the oven, there he was.

“Hey there, beautiful,” he winked. “Get a decent night’s sleep this time?”

“Much better, thanks. Where are you moving in town anyway?”

“A little apartment just down the road, over Jill’s Café.”

“Oh right, I forgot all about that little place. I know a woman who stayed in that suite for a while, years back. It’s a nice place for just a single person. I have a little place pretty similar upstairs actually.”

She poured him a coffee as he sat down at the table near the window and handed him another Danish.

Denise noticed everything about the way he ate the Danish as she decorated a fresh batch of cupcakes for a little girl’s birthday party. He shamelessly licked icing and field berry syrup from his fingers and looked like he was thoroughly into it. The man indulged his sweet tooth the way a person was supposed to, unapologetically and with utter joy.

“Damn, woman! You’re gonna be seeing me daily at this rate.”

Denise had never been called woman before and the tone in which he said it made the hairs on her arms stand up. She loved the effect he had on her. Merle sounded a little caveman-like as he groaned out the word woman and it made her toes curl. It was in that moment that she realized she didn’t want to be with Gary anymore, but she didn’t know how to end a marriage with someone in such a small town.

“Well, I better get down to the shop soon,” Merle sighed.

“Are you working at Daryl’s shop then?”

“Yep, just staying with him and Carol till my stuff gets delivered on Monday,” he smiled before handing over some money for his order.

“What brings you to such a small town anyway? Did you just want to be closer to your brother?”

“Failure brought me here,” he shrugged. “I had a shop of my own in Atlanta, just a little place, but I did OK. Then a big box type auto shop moved into the same neighborhood and put me out of business.”

“I’m sorry, that’s a shame,” she noted.

“I’m happy to be here though, Daryl needs another decent mechanic around since Carol’s gonna be having a baby.”

“She is?”

“Shit! Don’t say anything. I wasn’t supposed to mention it for the first three months, something like that.”

“I won’t say a word, no worries,” she smiled.

“Well, I’ll be seeing you around then.”

It felt like that was it, Denise’s little flirtatious fling with the handsome stranger had no reason to continue and she was sad about that.

“I hope so.”

“You going to the cabaret tomorrow night?”

She would be selling baked goods, sandwiches and veggie/fruit trays as usual but didn’t go to the dance or anything. Gary never attended the cabaret. Gary didn’t like to be very social.

“I’ll be catering it,” she nodded.

“Your man going?” he asked with a sly smile as if he already knew he wouldn’t be there.

“I’ll be on my own.”

“Will you save me a dance or is that too scandalous?” he winked.

“I’m at the point where I welcome scandal,” she sighed.

“I’m gonna hold you to that.”

Denise bit her lip as he walked out the door and felt that aching again, the one that made her want to beg him not to go.

/

Daryl was under a truck working on the breaks when Merle arrived, and he was happy to be working with his brother again. They had started out working on cars in the driveway as kids and it felt like coming full circle.

“You and Carol going to that thing tomorrow night?”

“Yeah, we’ll stop by for a bit. Carol’s kinda tired lately but she likes to at least check out the music.”

“I’ve got a dance lined up with that lady baker,” Merle winked.

“She’s married, Merle.”

“Yeah, married to a prick.”

“Still, don’t go starting trouble in town,” Daryl chuckled nervously.

“I like her.”

“She’s taken.”

“If her man isn’t treating her right and I can treat her better then she has a right to know there’s a better option, right?”

“You can’t go stealing another man’s wife, Merle!”

“If he was good to her then I wouldn’t be able to,” Merle countered.

“You got a twisted sense of logic there, brother.”

“It’s simple to me. Carol would never leave you cause she’s got it good and she’s happy, right?”

“Right.”

“See? Simple.”

“I knew you'd be trouble,” Daryl sighed.

“That son of a bitch is making her feel bad about her body,” Merle noted as he grabbed his coveralls from the hook on the wall and began to pull them on.

“Seriously?” Daryl frowned.

“Yeah. She's the prettiest, sweetest woman I ever met and her body is just my type, she belongs with me,” Merle said simply.

“Gonna go over there with a club and just snatch her up?” Daryl laughed.

“Maybe. You got a club?” Merle chuckled.

“There's a Louisville Slugger by the shop door. Have fun!”

/

Denise stayed late to work on the food for the cabaret. She had taken a trip to the grocery store in the afternoon and was dealing with 2 carts full of produce and sandwich items. The music played and she worked with her hair in braids and a bandana on to keep the sweat out of her eyes.

_**Hold on, I know you're scared  
But you're so close to heaven   
Eyes shut tight   
Just pretend you're like a feather   
  
Flew down the clouds together   
But don't look down, not ever   
Don't ask why   
Just look out unto forever   
  
All this time   
You're just tryin' not to lose it   
You can always learn to fly   
You never do until you do it   
  
Up high in the middle of nowhere   
Don't know but you know when you get there   
Walk slow and low on a tightrope   
Hope it lasts but you know, you never know** _

The streetlights came on and a soft golden glow flooded in through the same shop window she’d been looking through since she was a child. She poured a small glass of wine and placed a cherry on her tongue when she took a break and thought of Merle. It seemed like a cruel twist of fate for her to meet a man after she was already married who didn’t even seem to acknowledge her weight and simply thought she was beautiful.

_Why couldn’t it have been Gary that felt this way back when I loved him?_

She had loved Gary once, but his thoughtless words had changed her heart and she knew she'd never love him again. It was past midnight when she got home that night and Gary was already asleep. She had driven past Daryl and Carol’s house on the way home like a kid with a crush, titillated simply by the knowledge that _he_ was sleeping there.


	4. Chapter 4

_Tennessee Whiskey - Chris Stapleton_

**<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zAThXFOy2c> **

* * *

**Chapter 4**

The next day Merle finished up a half-day with Daryl in the shop and decided to buy a new shirt in town for the cabaret. He was planning to make a move and wanted to look good when he did it. Denise could always just tell him no if she wasn't into it but something inside was screaming at him to jump in with both feet cause she looked so ready to jump too. Merle Dixon wasn’t the 'sit around and pine' type, he put his intentions out there clearly and he knew that he could be good for her. He planned to find out by the end of the cabaret if he could make her his.

He had never fallen for a married woman before and he knew it would be complicated but he also knew that nobody else was gonna cut it for him. Denise, with her wavy golden blonde hair and big blue eyes, was the one for him. He wanted all of his babies to have her smile. Merle had always been the stubborn type with his desires. When his eye settled on something he wanted, he made it his mission to pursue it until he knew it wasn't possible. He had chased the dream of owning his own shop and losing it hadn't killed that spirit in him, he was glad of that because it meant there was still hope for him.

/

Music was blasting over the typically empty field just outside of town by 6 pm. A country band would be followed by a 70s cover band later in the evening and everyone appeared to be in high spirits. A huge white tent was erected and a dance floor of gravel and dust with hay bails for seating completed the rustic aesthetic. Denise was sat behind a massive table, selling lemonade and finger foods to everyone in attendance. Another booth was selling booze and the crowd would surely be rowdier by 9 or 10 pm, but for now it was just getting started.

Merle walked across the field toward her table like approaching a prey item. She looked like a dream in a white sundress covered in tiny light pink roses and her hair in soft ringlets. Her ample cleavage was sinful and her curves were calling for his work-worn hands to trace them and commit them to memory. He wore his tight dark blue jeans and new shirt with his best cologne hoping to compel her over to the dark side.

“You trying to provoke me?” he growled as his hands came to rest on the red gingham tablecloth where her dainties were placed.

“Am I tempting you with sugar again?” she smiled.

“Not sugar this time, that dress is fuckin’ evil, woman.”

He could see that he stunned her, but also that she wasn’t upset about it.

“Tell me to stop flirting with you and I will,” he vowed.

“What if I don’t want you to stop?” she asked.

“Then it must mean something, right?”

“Merle…”

“Meet me behind the tent later,” he pleaded. “I wanna talk to you alone.”

“When?”

“10 pm.”

The cabaret would be going on till well past midnight and she knew that everyone would be half-cut by 10 pm anyway. Her table would likely be empty by then.

“OK,” she nodded.

He found Daryl and Carol and they both tried to get him to see sense, but he was already too far gone. Merle watched her from across the way as a Chris Stapleton song played and he wondered what the hell was wrong with her husband. Denise was a stunner and Merle couldn’t get his head around her not hearing that she was beautiful at home. It was already planned in his mind. He would take her away from Gary and treat her like a queen. It was so simple in his mind.

**_I've looked for love in all the same old places_ ** **_  
_ ** **_Found the bottom of a bottle always dry_ ** **_  
_ ** **_But when you poured out your heart I didn't waste it_ ** **_  
_ ** **_'Cause there's nothing like your love to get me high_ ** **_  
  
_ ** **_You're as smooth as Tennessee whiskey_ ** **_  
_ ** **_You're as sweet as strawberry wine_ ** **_  
_ ** **_You're as warm as a glass of brandy_ ** **_  
_ ** **_And honey, I stay stoned on your love all the time_ **

10 pm came so slowly that he was stir crazy by the time he walked to the back of the tent to meet her. She was a few minutes late and explained that a last-minute customer wanted some lemonade. She looked nervous and he didn’t waste any time getting to the point.

“There's no point in pretending anymore. I want you, Denise. I ain’t the type of man to beat around the bush. If you’re happy with your man, then I’ll leave it be and I won’t be all childish about it neither. I’ll still be a friend to you if that’s what you want, but you gotta know that I want more.”

“But are you sure?” she whispered. “We only just met.”

“Doesn't matter, I know what I want. I never felt like this about any woman before.”

“I want you too…this is just so unexpected.”

“I'll be good to you, honey. I wanna treat you right and tell you're beautiful every day. If what's-his-face don't cherish you then someone else is bound to see what he doesn't.”

“But why me?” she asked as if it wasn’t obvious, at least it was to him.

“Cause it has to be you, there ain't nobody else for me,” he said simply.

“I knew when I first saw you that it would change my life somehow,” she said.

“Me too. So, can I have that dance?”

“Yes.”

Merle led her to the dance floor where more than a few people eyed them with confusion, but Denise didn’t care. She was pulled into his strong arms and his hands came to rest on her back in the very center of the dusty dance floor as an old Eric Clapton song was being a little mangled by a local bar band. The song played loud and filled the tent as she lay her hands on his shoulders and it felt so good to be swept away. By the time the song was half over, her cheek was resting shamelessly on his chest and she knew that she’d found the one. Ending things with Gary could be ugly, but it had to be done, someone like Merle wouldn’t come along twice in a lifetime.

**It's late in the evening** **  
** **She's wondering what clothes to wear** **  
** **She puts on her makeup** **  
** **And brushes her long blonde hair** **  
** **And then she asks me, "Do I look alright?"** **  
** **And I say, "Yes, you look wonderful tonight"**

“Do you need time?” he asked when the dance was over.

Merle pulled her back behind the tent to say goodnight and she knew that everyone in town would be talking.

“Not long, I just need to think of the words...I've never left anyone before.”

“If you need time, then take it. I ain't going nowhere, OK?”

“I sure hope not...cause I think you might just be the one. Is it crazy to say that?” she winced.

“Nope. I was just thinking something similar myself.”

They were hiding in the shadows, like common criminals and it was all she could do not to just run away with him right there.

“You know, before you do leave him, we should at least kiss,” Merle broached with a cheeky grin.

“Oh yeah?” she giggled.

“Well, what if don't like the way I kiss? You could end up divorced and stuck with a man you don't wanna kiss. That would be a damn tragedy, wouldn't it?”

“You make a pretty solid case there,” she smirked.

“I'm just thinking of you, honey. Kissin' is important.”

“That's true.”

His face became more serious then and he reached out his big hands to take her by the cheeks. He lay a kiss on her lips, slow and soft, that left her breathless. Her bottom lip slipped briefly between his and he turned his head for a moment to take it up a notch for just half a minute more. She felt his tongue move against her own in a blissful wave and his hands drifted down to the small of her back. Denise had never had a first kiss that left her so weak. Merle Dixon wasn't like anyone else.

“Well?” he asked when it was over and her eyes were still closed.

“Nobody ever kissed me like that,” she whispered.

“I wanna kiss you like that every single day, will you let me?”

“Yes.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Denise made it home that night after midnight again and apparently the news traveled quickly.

“So, you were getting cozy with some no-good brother of Daryl Dixon at the cabaret?” Gary accused as soon as she walked through the door.

“It was a dance.”

“From what I heard it was a little closer than just a dance.”

“If you weren’t ashamed to be seen with me, it could have been us dancing.”

“Who the hell said I’m ashamed?”

“I don't think we've ever actually gone out together. What am I supposed to think?”

“I’m just not social! So what?”

“You didn’t used to be this isolated. You used to go out a lot before we got together. I saw pictures of all the friends you used to hang out with.”

“I was younger then.”

“We’re only in our thirties, Gary.”

“What are you saying? I don’t like to go out much, so you get to have a boyfriend?”

“I’m saying…why don’t you just be honest. I’m not the one you want."

“You wanna go? Then go!”

“Just tell me the truth, Gary!”

“You want the truth? It feels like you’ve given up on yourself! There! You happy now?”

“You’re a sad man, Gary. I want a divorce.”

Denise was finished, finished defending who she was and how she chose to live her life. She was no supermodel but the last time she checked she wasn’t obligated to be.

“You think that instantly replacing me with some stranger will make you feel better. Go ahead and try it, you’ll be crawling back to me before the week is out.”

“No, I won't. I'd rather be alone than be with you.”

Gary stormed off down the hall and she collected the few items that she cared about, but most of her most prized belongings were already at the bakery.

Denise knew right where she belonged, right back where she started on her own as a younger woman. She walked out into the darkness of night but it felt like the dawning of a brand new day. This was her New Years and she was going to stop living like she wasn't the one calling the shots.

Denise arrived at the bakery and headed up the narrow staircase to the tiny suite she lived in as a young woman. The place hadn't changed much in all those years but she sure had. Denise had lost herself, but looking around the bedroom she remembered the girl she used to be; passionate, artistic and brave.

There were band posters, a corkboard with ticket stubs from concerts in the city and picture after picture of her with friends. Gary was the beginning of the end for the girl she used to be, but she could be that girl again. Maybe Merle was the beginning of reconnecting with the old Denise.

She unpacked the few things she'd brought with her and realized that it was very late and she didn't even have Merle's phone number, she didn't have Carol's either and it was much too late to call a pregnant woman anyway.

In the morning, Merle would probably be stopping by for his coffee and Danish and she'd get to tell him that she was free and maybe they'd kiss again, maybe she'd never let him go as long as she lived.

Denise put fresh sheets on the twin bed, tried not to wonder if she was losing her mind, and took a long hot shower. Her hands moved down her body, slippery with soap, as if rediscovering herself. The idea of actually making love to someone else was terrifying in a good way and she closed her eyes in the steam to imagine Merle's body naked and close enough to touch.

Those muscular arms, the tanned skin...the scent of cologne and whiskey...that sweet country boy grin...and his ass in those tight jeans...he was perfection to her.

Soon she was leaning against the tile of the shower replaying the way he kissed her and the sound of his deep gravelly voice.

Denise crawled beneath the covers of a bed she hadn't slept on in ten years and reached over to switch off the lamp with nothing but new possibilities ahead of her the next morning.

/

Living upstairs had its advantages, she was awake and down in the bakery in her nightie starting the yeast for bread with a cup of coffee by 6 am. The smell of yeast coming to life in the large silver bowl of the mixer after she poured in the honey and warm water to activate the process, this was what she loved. Everything around her felt more sensual, every scent, everything she touched and tasted. The world was coming back to life, like in the springtime when she was 7 and the snow was finally melting. The smell of grass growing again after so much cold was almost primal. After ten years with Gary, she was coming back to life, coming back to herself as a woman.

She put on a simple black dress and a pair of baby pink panties that she never bothered wearing for Gary and prayed she'd see Merle soon.

A little voice whispered that maybe he didn't mean it and maybe she was just going to be stuck being single. She told that voice that being single was better than being with a man who didn't love her and that Merle did mean it, she knew damn well that he did. The doubtful voice in her mind wasn't going to be in charge anymore, not this time.

She was just finished the morning bread rush when Carol walked in and Denise wasn't sure how to react.

“Hi, Carol,” she smiled. “What can I get for you?”

“A loaf of white, a cup of decaf, and a chat?” she smiled.

“Uh...sure.”

Denise slid the loaf into a paper bag and poured a coffee for her friend.

“Listen...I know what this is probably about,” she began as she handed over the coffee.

“Yeah, my brother-in-law seems to have taken a hit by cupids arrow,” Carol noted.

“Carol, I know this isn't like me but-”

“Denise, that man is head over heels in love with you already.”

“How do you know?”

“He was up all night agonizing over whether we thought you'd really leave Gary for him. He said if you stayed with Gary and he had to see you with him that he couldn't handle it. He said it would drive him crazy.”

“I left Gary last night.”

“Wow...so this is really something then,” Carol smiled. “I was just worried that maybe he was seeing something that wasn't there. Losing the shop in Atlanta hit him hard and we haven't seen him smile in ages till he met you.”

“Things weren't good with Gary anyway and Merle just...I can't really explain it without it sounding silly cause we only just met but...I love him.”

“Thank God for that, cause he's stopping by later and I wanted to check in with you before he got here. Merle is really important to me and he's had a hard year.”

“It's over with Gary and I'd never do anything to hurt Merle.”

“I better get out of here before he sees me checking up on his romantic life. Sorry to bother you, Denise, I just love that goof.”

“Me too,” Denise nodded with a giggle.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Merle walked in around 10:30 and she could tell he hadn't spoken to Carol yet, he looked nervous and antsy.

“Hey,” she smiled.

“Hey there, honey. How's it going?”

“Great,” she smiled. “I had a really good night's sleep upstairs.”

“Upstairs?”

“Yeah, I'll be staying upstairs from now on.”

“You left him?” he beamed.

“Uh huh.”

“So we can be together?” he asked and she shook her head at how adorable he was in that moment.

“We better be, I just walked out on my husband for you.”

He walked around the counter to get to her and pulled her into a bear hug.

“You won't be sorry, honey...you won't ever be sorry you did this I promise.”

“Life is short and I've spent the last ten years with someone who's been bringing me down for so long that I forgot what feeling good is like.”

“All I wanna do is make you feel good, Denise. I wanna make you feel loved and beautiful and good every damn day.”

“You already do,” she whispered.

“Can I take you out tonight?” he asked.

“Of course.”

“I want to take you on a proper date...and then I wanna spend all night with you if that's not rushing you too much.”

She loved how direct he was, you never had to wonder what was going on with Merle Dixon.

“No rush at all, if I didn't have bakery to run I'd have you right here and now.”

“Well, damn, honey. I can always turn the closed sign on the door,” he chuckled.

“You are a bad influence aren't you?”

“You know it. I can wait till tonight. Pick you up at 8?”

“I'll be waiting.”

She handed him a take-out coffee and a Danish and spent the rest of the day walking on clouds.

/

The phone rang at noon and she knew it was Gary somehow.

“Tunnel Hill Bakery.”

“Denise, are you done being a lunatic or what?”

“Gary, I know this is sudden and it was never my intention to end things this way, but you treat me like garbage and I'm sick of feeling terrible about myself.”

“You're really leaving me for Merle Dixon?”

“I'm leaving you for me. How would you like being told you're unhealthy and unattractive every day? You made me hate my own body, Gary.”

“So he doesn't care what you look like or your health?”

“He loves the way I look and he isn't stupid so he knows that being plus-sized doesn't automatically make me a terminal case!”

“You're being ridiculous!”

“Ridiculous was putting up with you, I'm being smart for the first time in ten years. I'll talk to a lawyer and have the divorce papers sent as soon as possible.”

“For fuck sakes, Denise!”

“I hope you treat the next woman who falls for you better than you treated me. I hope you learn from this and find love again some day. Goodbye, Gary.”

She hung up the phone and sank down to the floor with an exhausting sense of relief that it was over.

/

Merle called when he was finished work and asked if she would mind a rustic kind of date.

“Rustic?” she smiled.

“Yeah, like outdoors. I can take you to a restaurant if you want but I kinda had an idea at work that I thought might be good and I just ran over there to pull it all together.”

“I'm fine with rustic,” she insisted. “Thanks for letting me know so I don't wear heels or anything silly.”

“Can I pick you up a little earlier then, like 6? That too early?”

“Nope. That's perfect. See you soon.”

“You're easy-going,” he noted. “I love that in a woman.”

They hung up and Denise closed the shop to get ready. She walked upstairs, took a shower and threw on some jeans and wine red blouse with a black tank top underneath. It was pretty but casual and she could wear her black leather boots with it. She wondered what he meant by rustic but she didn't really care where they were, she just wanted to be with him.

Merle picked her up in those evil tight jeans and a green flannel shirt and looked so handsome she couldn't believe he was hers. She climbed into his truck after he opened the door for her and they drove out of town to the tunnels and she couldn't help grinning. The tunnels of Tunnel Hill were from back in the civil war and a tourist attraction in the area. The tunnels were 1, 477 feet long and constructed out of brick and stone. It was where teens came to make out and then she noticed something she wasn't expecting...white Christmas lights.

“What's that?” she asked as he parked the truck not far from the tunnel entrance.

It was still about a 5 minute walk to the W&A tunnel gates but there were definitely lights.

“I know this is kinda dumb but Daryl said that maybe we'd have people glaring at us in town and I don't really give a shit about what they think but at least for a first date it might be nice to be alone.”

“This is perfect,” she smiled. “But seriously, what are those lights? Did you put those there?”

“Yeah, I ran out here and asked a buddy of mine who does security here to keep the tunnels empty for a night. Come on.”

He took her hand and walked her to the tunnel where he had tacked up a string of white Christmas lights around the archway of the tunnel and set up some picnic chairs.

“Merle, this is so sweet.”

“It's kinda corny but at least we can be alone.”

“Merle, this is perfect.”

They sat in the tunnel and evening began to fall as he pulled wine and food from a basket he borrowed from Carol. He handed her wine in a red solo cup and she couldn't help falling harder and harder by the minute. Merle had made a picnic of sandwiches, fruit, and chocolate cake and she couldn't take how cute it all was.

“You had enough?” he asked as she handed him back her paper plate to return to the basket.

“I'm good,” she smiled. “I can't believe you thought of this, it's a perfect first date.”

“You're a cool chick,” he laughed.

“How long will the guard be telling people the tunnel is closed?” she inquired.

“As long as we want, Axle's a buddy of mine.”

“You know that kids have been coming here to make out for decades?” she noted.

“Oh yeah?”

“Yep.”

“This place is nice for a date and maybe some making out when you're a kid and you don't know no better, but it ain't the right place to make love,” he grinned.

“Where's the right place for making love?” she breathed.

“I ain't moved into my place yet, so maybe your place would do?”

“....yeah,” she grinned. “My place would be fine for that.”

“Sweet.”

She hadn't had sex with anyone new in ten years and she'd never been hotter for anyone than she was for Merle. To say she was anxious and aroused would be a massive understatement.

Merle got up and grabbed the rest of the things he'd brought and she felt her heart thumping against her rib cage as she stood up to help hand him items for the basket.

“Since we're here we may as well make out a little though, right?” he smirked.

Denise could only bite her lip as he moved into her space and held her against the rough stone walls of the tunnel. He claimed her mouth with his own and let his hands move down her body to her hips as she melted into the kiss. Before too long he was lifting her leg up and wrapping it around his waist, thrusting against her just enough to drive her insane and licking her right ear with his hot tongue.

“You...you're driving me crazy,” she whined.

“I'm gonna fuck you so nice, honey...tell me you want me to.”

“I want you to...I need it.”

“Just what I wanted to hear. Let's go.”

They burned a trail down main street right to the door of the bakery and almost teleported up the narrow stairway to her little apartment.

The moment the door closed, he turned the deadbolt and his hands went straight for the buttons of his flannel shirt.

“I gotta have you, Denise. I don't wanna wait one more minute.”

“Me neither,” she answered, her cheeks flushed and her heart still thumping.

“Good, cause I wanna do this right and give it to you like you deserve...this could take a while.”


	7. Chapter 7

You Know Me Too Well - Nothing But Thieves

<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1VnO0V1TcE>

* * *

**Chapter 7**

She watched with hungry eyes as he stripped off his clothing piece by piece.

“You're so perfect,” she uttered. “How can you be this perfect?”

He was stunning. His muscular arms and broad chest made her ache in places she'd almost forgotten about and with just the slightest hint of a beer belly, he still looked human. She loved him in every conceivable way.

She decided then that she was going to trust what he told her, that he loved her body and found her attractive just as she was. She knew that she could trust him and that felt amazing. Denise began with the buttons of her blouse and after a few moments with slightly trembling fingers, she was standing before him in her jeans and her pale pink bra awaiting a response.

“Good God almighty,” he groaned and he looked ready to pounce.

Merle grabbed her and pushed her against the nearest wall in a fury of desire. He claimed her right breast with one of his big hands and buried his face in her neck to breathe her in.

“You're so hot it fuckin' hurts me, honey...why you wanna hurt me like this?”

“Trust me, I don't want to hurt you,” she giggled.

“Then put me outta my misery, woman,” he moaned, pushing his boxers down to the floor and reaching behind her back to unfasten her bra.

Denise managed to peek down between their bodies to get a good look at his dick and she hissed with disbelief. 9 inches, his dick was easily 9 inches and she shook her head in astonishment.

“Jesus,” she blurted.

“What?”

“This.”

She reached down and wrapped her fingers slowly around his cock, unable to touch her fingers on the other side and almost drowning in lust.

“It's all for you, honey,” he growled, “that's all yours.”

Merle was hard as stone and she'd never felt anything like it. He was damn near twice the size of Gary and her knees fell weak at the idea of him inside her.

Merle kissed his way down to her breasts and held her hands up against the wall as he licked slow evil circles around her nipples. It was as if her breasts were connected to her core and she felt a pulse begin to beat between her thighs as her panties became damp.

“You're so evil,” she sighed. “You got me halfway there already.”

“Don't you dare cum yet, honey. I'm gonna show you what it's like to be with a man who loves a real woman's body.”

He closed his mouth over her right nipple then and sucked just right as she watched and died a little inside, desperate to just grab him and beg him to give it to her hard and fast.

“Fuuuuck,” she groaned, trying hard not to let go too quickly.

They made it down the narrow hallway eventually to her bedroom where he unzipped her jeans and peeled them down her legs to reveal her baby pink panties. Denise wore French cut hip-hugging panties and he apparently loved the way they showed off her wide hips. He gripped her hips firmly in his hands as he sat down on the edge of the bed and pressed his face to her belly, growling with need. He was like an animal with her and she loved it.

His hands trailed down the back of her panties as she stood before him and she threaded her fingers through his hair, still amazed that he had come into her life so randomly.

“You're killin' me, woman. Come here,” he demanded urging her down into his lap.

He pulled her close straddling his lap on the edge of the bed and buried his face between her breasts, grabbing her ass and pulling her pelvis down on his cock to tease her with his hardness.

Denise was almost blind with lust as he rocked her on his lap, his ridiculously huge cock pressing against her wet panties. She needed him inside her more with each passing second.

“I can't hold on,” she whispered, “I just can't take it.”

“Alright then, honey...I'll be nice to you but just this once. Next time I'll keep you on the edge all night maybe,” he chuckled.

“You're evil, Merle Dixon,” she grinned.

“You ain't seen nothin' yet.”

/

Merle picked her up and lay her out, taking his place between her soft thighs and kissed her hard as he teased her more with his cock through the soaked silk of her panties. She was so ready for him and he was going to make her so happy she chose him.

Merle kissed from her collar bones down to her breasts and then licked slowly along her panty lines. He gripped her open thighs holding them wide apart as he kissed her right where her clit was hiding behind the smooth pink fabric. He could sense her need for him, her body begging him for more.

She pleaded with him to go faster...she said she was going to cum with her panties on if he didn't stop teasing her.

Merle grinned and slid the material to the side to reveal perfect pink lips and obvious arousal. He licked up one side and down the other as she clawed at the bedsheets and balled her fists up in desperation. Her head was arched back on the pillow as her breathing became ragged and he loved every single thing about the way she looked then. Her full hips and thighs and her massive breasts...just looking at her made him want to cum.

He teased his way around her clit and slowly slid a finger inside her as he finally closed his lips over hers. His tongue moved in waves over her labia and she whimpered out loud, apologizing for not being able to hold on as it overcame her.

She arched her back and spread her legs wider as he grasped her hips with both hands and fucked her slowly with his tongue, stopping every few seconds to slither his tongue around her clit.

/

Denise couldn't even make words. Her mind was blank and she needed his dick like oxygen then.

“Take me...please, take me now,” she pleaded.

He grinned and grabbed a condom from the pocket of his jeans before returning to her and sliding it down his massive cock.

“I've never been with a man like you,” she said as he climbed on top of her.

“How do you mean?”

“You're way bigger than every man I've had sex with.”

“No worries, I'll take ya nice and easy. I know how to handle this weapon safely,” he winked.

Everything he said made her hotter, just the way he worded things.

“You're killin' me,” she panted.

She felt his cock at her entrance then and he cradled her head in the crook of his huge arm as he began to ease his way in.

“Damn...oh damn, that's good!” she whined.

He moved in a little more and she began to wonder when it would reach the end, finding that he was deeper inside her than anyone had ever been, in so many ways.

“You OK?”

“Yeah, just take it easy on me.”

He reached under her to take her right ass cheek with his hand and then thrust nice and slow into her. He rocked her gently for a good while until she was ready for more and then she decided to take over.

“Roll over,” she said and he climbed off of her to lay out on her bed, looking gorgeous and still hard as hell.

Denise threw her leg over his hips to take him in and ride him good and hard. Her breasts hung down over his face and he caught them to bring them to his mouth, sucking and licking until she was ready to cum again. She felt his dick stroking the front wall of her insides and her clit was nudging his pubic bone so perfectly.

She grasped his wrists and held them up over his head as he continued to suck her breasts and felt the spirit coming for her a second time. There was nothing in the world like Merle Dixon's cock and she loved him more than anything.

“Oh fuck! Oh fuck yessss! Mmmm yeah!” she cried out loud. “You feel so good in me...I never had a man like you, Merle....”

/

He loved her orgasm gibberish and by the time she collapsed he needed to cum so bad it couldn't wait. He immediately took her from behind and fucked her till his eyes rolled back in his head. He smacked her ass once just gently to see what she'd do and the way she moaned indicated that he could do it again. By the time he blew his load he was giving her a few good hard smacks just to watch her ass jiggle a little more as he fucked her. Her ass was so round and full and getting to stare at it as he nailed her was a privilege he planned to enjoy as often as possible.

/

“Damn,” he gasped as he flopped next to her.

“You said it.”

“You're incredible, honey.”

“You're pretty incredible yourself,” she sighed.

“I think we should keep doin' this,” he yawned. “I think we should get you divorced and then I can have you all to myself. That sound good?”

“Sounds perfect to me.”

“Sweet,” he answered and rolled over, pulling her into his arms to pass out. “Mind if I just rest my eyes...for a minute...just...”

He was out like a light in mid-sentence and Denise had to stifle a laugh as she pulled a blanket over them both. She was right where she started after a ten-year detour but she knew that she probably appreciated where she was more because of that detour. Merle was perfect for her and she was already perfect for him, she had nothing to change and nothing to fix. She was just what he wanted, just as she was, nothing could feel better.

  
  


########################

It was going to take a while for the divorce to go through and the day that it did, Merle planned to propose. Everything between them was amazing over the next couple of months and even though they still lived in the same town as Gary, they didn't let it get to them. Gary ran his mouth about Denise and said horrible things about her but Denise laughed it off not giving a single fuck about his opinion anymore.

Denise wound up losing 12 pounds by fluke, Merle insisted that he loved her body just as it was, but she was doing less emotional eating and it just happened without her even trying. Merle had voiced his opinion about it but it was nothing like Gary would have said.

“You ain't losing all this sweet booty, are you?” Merle pouted when she had to toss out a pair of jeans that were too big.

“I promise the booty is staying put for the most part, I wasn't even trying to lose any weight,” she laughed.

“It's your body, honey, so do what you like...but I do love this ass a little extra juicy,” he growled and grabbed her to toss her on the bed yet again.

“Merle!” she screamed in delight.

Merle was so much fun, in and out of bed. Denise was never happier.

/

Merle was looking forward to finally bumping into Gary and the day that it finally happened was one of the best moments of his life. It was the kind of moment that made a man feel twenty feet tall.

There the prick was, standing right in front of him in line at the bank. Gary turned to see him and looked like he was going to piss himself. Merle loved that Gary had to look up at him, he was smaller than him in many departments by the look of it. Gary was only 5 feet 7 or so and Merle was 6 foot, it was amusing so Merle grinned down at him.

“So,” Gary began, “You gonna kick my ass or something?

“I probably should for how shitty you made her feel but I don't see any need for that now.”

“And why is that?” Gary muttered.

Merle brought his face down till he was eye level with the prick and whispered the words right at his stupid face.

“Because, Gary, I tell that woman how beautiful she is every single day and she's happy now...not to mention that when I'm sliding my thick cock into your wife and she's crying out loud that she's never had a man like me, clawing at my back pleading with me not to stop, her happiness is all the revenge I need,” he winked.

**~ The End**

  
  



End file.
